


Inside the Fire

by PavlovaPelican



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, Goopy Cuddles, M/M, Romance, Semi Slow Burn, Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-20
Updated: 2016-06-27
Packaged: 2018-05-07 22:18:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5472596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PavlovaPelican/pseuds/PavlovaPelican
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Grillbys flames had failed to cut through the darkness, so maybe he should embrace it instead? </p>
<p>A post-barrier break story centred around Grillbys' growing attachment to Gaster.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Leave

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for clicking on my story! Here are some things you might like to know before you start reading. 
> 
> \- Post-barrier break  
> \- Snowdin is a tourist town  
> \- Monsters live on the surface and in the underground  
> \- Will be weird sex in later chapters but romance comes first
> 
> Thank you! Please enjoy and leave feedback if you want! I'd love to know what you guys think of it! Suggestions are great too. :3

Grillby glanced up from his spot behind the bar as the door to his warm restaurant opened. Cool night air blowing in from Snowdin as a short grinning skeleton stepped through the door with a small human in hand, Sans' slippers patting against the tiles as the pair walked towards the bar waving and greeting the regulars, who cheered at their presence, before taking their seats. 

Frisk patted the bar playfully, jumping up and down in their seat as Grillby walks over to them. his flames glowing bright and tall as he looks down at the grinning human, tilting his head questioning. 

'fries, fries, FRIES, FRIES, FRIES' 

Frisk continually signed the word fries, moving their thumb and finger together in a dunking motion as they grin up at the bar tender. 

A crackling sound is heard from the man, his flame growing higher in amusement, he glances behind frisk, expecting someone to be there but only empty space met his gaze. The flame on his head glowed dimmer in confusion. Why did he do that? Collecting himself before he glanced over at the skeleton, the wide grin ever plastered onto Sans face. 

''looks like the boss is excited for grub, we'll get three-er... two orders of fries'' he reached over to frisk and patted them on the head, his permanent grin seeming to falter for a moment. Frisk looked up at Sans with a worried expression, before he could be questioned Grillby nodded and left, striding through the fire exit into to the kitchen. 

Grillby could sense a cold heavy presence lingering around Frisk and Sans, he couldn't put his finger on the feeling, but whatever it is was causing his flames to flicker on edge almost as if his body was afraid of being doused. Using a MTT brand industrial stove as well as his own fire magic he cooked the fries quickly before returning to the two individuals at the bar and placing their food down in front of them. 

'Thank you!' ''Thanks Grillbz.'' 

As the two ate their meal he glanced over his tavern, he spotted a group of human teenagers drinking in the corner, being served by one of his waitresses, they were speaking over each other and bickering about what to order, he grumbled, will have to watch out for that group as it gets later. He continued looking but didn't spot anything out of the ordinary, a few regular monsters, the ex canine unit, that is, until he felt eyes on him.

He flicked his head to the left, expecting to see Sans staring back at him but he was not. Sans was talking to frisk about something before spotting his gaze and looking up at him with a questioning grin. Grillby stared back for a moment before turning back forward. What was wrong with him today? he prided himself in being calm and collected, always knowing what was going on in his bar. 

His flames flickered wildly as the sense of unease grew, the light from his hair dancing out the window into the cold night, lighting up the area around his bar.

He felt a shiver run down his spine, causing him to grip the wooden bar top tightly. Almost losing control of his temperature as a whips of smoke float up into the air from where he made contact. 

''Hey grillby, you doing okay? you look a little ¬burnt out'' despite the pun, Sans' voice was filled with concern as he looked over the bar towards the fire man. Grillby nodded in his direction ''I..... think so.'' Grillby breathed out with a raspy voice. ''Ya sure?'' Sans leant over and looked down behind the bar. Grillby was confused to what he was looking at before realising he hadn't let go of the wood, he jumped back swiftly, getting a damp cloth ahead of patting the bar down, stifling the embers he had made. 

He was called over from the other side of the bar by a fish monster, leaving without too much questioning from Sans. 

After that incident the rest of the night went fine, Grillby served his moderate number of customers until there was only a few left. Sans sleepily sipped his ketchup at his favourite spot at the bar, with only the teenage group still left at one of the booths. Frisk had left awhile ago when Papyrus collected them from 'this spaghetti - lacking' establishment as he called it. He tried not to take offence to it, cooking spaghetti involved water, something he dare not touch. 

 

One of the humans wondered over to the bar, stumbling and almost falling over. Grillby had cut them off ten minutes ago with closing time soon approaching, so he wondered what he could help the human with. He stopped his methodical cleaning of pint glasses and stood up straight, keeping a tired eye contact with the human. ''.....?''

''Ey firedude, can you get me two coronas, one for me and my skelly buddy here.'' He leant up and went to wrap his arm around Sans and missed, when the teenager looked up, Sans was sitting one seat over. ''Hey man, that was rude dude'' Sans just looked up at the slurring teenager and shrugged before going back to his ketchup. 

Grillby shook his head, the teenager knowing that he got cut off. ''Hey listen though but, you give the skeleton drinks, that's monster discrimination.'' he slurred as he leant onto the counter, the alcohol on his breath apparent. 

Grillby just shook his head again before folding his arms. his flames not changing as he remained calm.

The human looked over at Sans to see him squirting ketchup onto his teeth, some of the ketchup dripping down his chin. ''Oi that's real gross dude, didn't your father ever tell you not to play with your food?''

Sans visibly stiffened, the white lights from his eye socket disappearing as he looked down at the floor. 

Grillbys calm broke as he pointed towards the door, his arm extending past the human as his hot flames wooshed past the teenagers ear in warning. ''...Get ...out'' Grillbys flames rising higher from his body. 

''Yo wouldn't hurt a human dude, we all know that, your place wud get shut doo- '' Grillby grabbed the teenagers shirt and threw him to the floor before vaulting across the bar so he was standing between the human and Sans. Flames flickering wildly before taking his arms and extending them either side of him, a great wall of fire erupting from behind Grillby, cutting off the bar from view as the humans brown soul was pulled from his body in confrontation. Grillbys mouth opened with a horrific glow as flames erupted from his face, staring down at the soul in front of him. ''LEAVE.''

''y-yes sir.'' The teenager stumbled up and with his group of friends they ran out of the bar in fright, the door swinging closed behind them.

After a few moments Grillby pulled his flames back into his body, letting out a harsh cough as he closed his mouth. His soul feeling heavy before stamping out some small remaining embers, confidentially walking to the door and taking his keys out, locking it before striding back behind the bar and returning to his abandoned pint glass. 

''Are you okay? You didn't have to do that'' Sans shuffled closer to him, looking towards the flickering fire with worry. 

''It is far alright Sans... something the human said really got to you, I do not wish any harm for my favourite customer.'' Grillby let out a cough, finding it hard to speak such a long sentence. 

''Are you sure?'' 

''....yes'' Grillby nodded. 

Sans said his goodbyes and left after that, teleporting out of his bar with a flash. The walls of the building seeming darker than usual as Grillby continued his cleaning. Despite Sans leaving he still did not feel completely alone. The exhaustion from overworking finally hitting him, sighing gently as he thought about what had happened today. 

He suddenly felt really sad, a feeling of dread coming from his soul as his chest felt tight. He looked out the windows of his building, making sure nobody was there before walking behind the counter and sitting down on the floor. Bringing his knees up to his chest he held onto them for dear life. Why was he doing this? he shouldn't of gotten angry, he should of kept calm. What if they report it to the police? He would lose his life, he would... he would...

Grillby shook softly, steam drifting up off his eyes as dry tears formed before evaporating. he had never let such things get to him before, it felt like something sad had clung to his soul, darkening it, making it more sensitive.

He stayed like that for a moment before he felt something in his head, cooing softly, calming him down. The presence from before engulfing him as he slid backwards, his back pressed up against a cabinet. Exhausted, Grillby closed his eyes, a pinging in his mind telling him to be afraid, to stress about the cleaning he hasn't done, and to run. 

He was too tired to do any of those things as he drifted closer to sleep, his flame on his head glowing dimmer. Darkness creeping in as he felt something slimly wrap around his waist, hard structures at the end of the slime pulling him up into what felt like someone's lap. His fire being stifled among the darkness, sinking into the gloop as gentle feelings filed his mind. Encouraging to let sleep take him, praise and gratitude. Many complex emotions rushing through his mind without speaking word. He was too far gone to move as he accepted his fate, leaning back into the sludge as his mind went blank into a heavy slumber. 

'͈̳͉ͅ'̫͓S̸̗h͉h͙h́,̫͙̲͖͖͟ ̴̗̫̱̝̤̖I̹͚'̼v͡e̖̟͇̲͎ ͖͚̺̱͚̤̲g͔̠̫̠̤̳͚o̺̼̝̞̰̙t̙̟̼̦̣͟ ̬̗ͅy̴͖̟̱̬̩̣o̹u͓͔͓.͏̳̺͉̤.̛̹͇̘̱̼'͓̭͝'҉ ̵̦̟


	2. Not Lost

y̶̧͈͕̼̐̅͐ͤͣo͓̹͈ͩ̆͂̂́u̧̖͚̲̰ͤͬ̅͒̍̍̆́̕ͅ ̙̪͇ͦͭ̃̽͢ş̭͈̥̘̔̑̆̆̿̄͢h̭̱̞̻̘̦̞̐̐́ͅo̷̱̜̰̗̖̼̼̊́̊ͮͬ̄͐͊͢u̙̺̯̼͐ͨ̅ͬ̍̌̚ļ̼̲͉̓̉͝d͖͙̔͗͆̃ ̪͔̞͚̦͕̆́̇͛ͧw̵̸̼̻̳̥̮̼͍̓̔a͓̲͗̇ͧ̋̈̓k̞͓̦͔͑͐͆ͬ̒̃̈̎ë̯̫̙̫̝͚̓̆ͩͦ̽͜ ̡̛̻̖ͭͅu͔̥̖ͫ͌̏ͣ̍p̑̈́̀ͣ҉̹̖̞̹͍̙̦͢ ̧̛͖̲͍͉̘ͯ̈̄ͦͬ̊ͬ̾ͅͅn̨̞̈́o͆͐̑̒͏̯̰͓̟̩̩͞ͅw̴̥̩̹̅͌ͬͪ̇͂.̛̰̩̃ͪ̽̄ͧ͋ͧ͑͆

 

Grillby slowly opened his eyes. His head fuzzy from the strange dream he just had as he gently sat up to find himself in his large king-size bed, black sheets sliding off his flaming orange chest. The fireman sat there on his bed, listening to the birds chirping outside as light filtered in through his window, calming his nerves as he hummed to himself softly. What a beautiful morning. He stood up out of bed with energy, it was very rarely he woke up before his alarm feeling so fresh. 

The walking fire was about to start the mornings opening ritual before his face went bright, recognition flashing in his flames as he remembered the previous nights events. His blaze flickering quickly in a panic before bolting out his bedroom door wearing only his boxers. 

He ran through his house and bars kitchen before stumbling into the main restaurant area. Looking around in panic, expecting to see dirty tables and askewed chairs but instead he was met with the sight of a sparkling floor, stacked chairs and clean tables. 

He put his flickering hand over his forehead, there was no way he cleaned up last night, he had been so tired he fell asleep on the floor. He looked up at the clock above his bar I should have opened 10 minutes ago. 

''unless that presence...'' he looked around, seeing no dark shadows but felt a dull thumbing radiating from his soul. ''was this you...?"

''Me? Nah, I just got ere'''

Grillby jumped backwards at the voice and nearly tripped over a chair. ''SANS!'' he huffed orange smoke as he turned around to see Sans at the skeletons favourite spot at the bar, his head propped up on his elbow. ''Hey Grillbz, I was wondering why you weren't open yet, sooo-''

''Sans... no shortcuts into my bar please''. Grillby tried his best to glare at the small skeleton, but without his glasses it just looked like swirling magma taking up small indents on his face. 

''What's with that look fire eyes? You got a thing for hot bones?'' Sans paused and looked Grillby up and down, stopping at his chest made of orange swirling fire. ''Actually... what's with the new uniform? Or lack thereof?'' 

Grillby made an inaudible sound that could only be described as an 'eep', his cheeks turning bright blue as he realised he was just in boxers... in front of his favourite customer. He scampered behind the bar and stood up tall, trying to regain some of his dignity while Sans just chuckled. 

''... would you like some ketchup while I finished getting ready for opening?''

''Nah, I just came in early to look for someone who I thought was lost, but it seems like they're happy where they are'' Sans grinned up at Grillby and winked. The bartender just looked back, tilting his head slightly in question ''...?''

''Eh, don't worry about it Grillbz, but...'' Sans leaned across the counter towards Grillby, white iris disappearing from his eyes as he darkly whispered ''Someone's staring at your chest.''

Sans disappeared with a flash, Grillby visibly shuddering as the room suddenly felt cold. He looked around worriedly, sensing eyes on him as he crossed his arms over his chest, feeling exposed. 

 

s̶͞-̨s̵̕͞o̶r͢͠ry͞

 

The presence suddenly lessened as his restaurant warmed up, Grillby stood there for a moment, listening out, he had swore he heard a voice but, where from? He did not know, it felt like it was coming from every direction at once as well as from nowhere at all. 

Grillby blushed bright blue as he thought about what Sans had said before he bounced off to get dressed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uploading this at 3am so I apologize for any errors! =u= *yawns softly*
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy! :D 
> 
> LUF <3


	3. Ending

Besides the awkward and somewhat confusing morning encounter with Sans, the rest of the day went well for Grillby. He swiftly served his patrons with more flare than normal, his flames danced around the bar as he strutted from patron to patron, work boots clacking against the floor. Sans stopped by for his usual meals, his smile seeming more genuine than normal as he greeted the regulars. 

As the sun light that filtered through the underground started to dim, a dog with a spiked collar walked up to the bar. 

''h-hey Grillby... I can see you because of your moving fire but... there is something moving I cannot see'' doggo softly barked. 

Grillby lent over the counter closer to him. ''....?''

''I-I don't know man... It's moving but I don't know, it's giving me the creeps...'' doggo shivered as a gust of cold breeze crossed his shoulders. ''I'm going to need some dog treats for this'' his paws patted across the floor as he made his way out of the bar with the rest of the Canine squad. 

''Please don't bother the customers...'' Grillby whispered to himself, looking around the bar as if he was expecting a reaction. 

But nobdy – 

''Ḯ̴̜̫̲ͪ̍ͦ'̧̫͕͔͖͍͓͎͎ͧ̀͑̚͞M͙͒͂ ̨͚̫̣̙̈͌ͭͨ̔̓̃͜ͅS̛̝̣͓͉̥̳̦͗̾ͥ͋̏ͧ̌ͩ͜ͅO̖̬̪͇̝ͤ̍̓ͬ̉́͘ͅR̴͓͇̜̱̍ͮ͗͑̆͜Ȓ̷̡̌ͭͬͣ͞ͅY̧̳̝͍̲ͥ͒̄̀'' the voice rang loudly through his head, making jump up and hit his head on a shelf. 

''OH̕ I̸'̧M ̸S̴O ͠S̶O͠ŖR̷Y҉ DEA͠R, ͘A̧R̴E͟ ̧Y̧OU͞ ̢OK̀AY̧,͘ I'̵M ͟SORRY͏,͟ I͡'M͜ S͘OR͜RY,͠ ͡I D͡IDN̸'͏T͏ ͠-͘''

''Hey Grillby~ you okay~?'' the last customer in the bar asked him as she blobbed up and down on a table. 

Grillby nodded in her direction, then politely walked over to her and motioned towards the door, asking her gently to leave. 

She nodded and understood ''Thanks for tonight hottie~ Look after yourself okay?'' waddling out the bar as Grillby closed the door behind her, locking it. 

 

He folded his arms and leant his back against the door, standing patiently. ''...Are you ready to talk?''

After a minute of silence, the room went dark, windows blacking out in a swirl of smoke as the room turned grey, tables and chair losing their warmth as the air went still, Grillbys clothes began to wash out to a similar shade, the only colour in the room being his bright fire as it flickered, contrasting against the distortions. 

Grillby's eyes showed panic beneath his glasses as his chest moved up and down with rapid breaths, but was unmoving as swirling smoke ripped a hole in space and time. A swirling vortex decorated by the entire galaxy, held open by a circle of bones as a dripping, gloopy man poured out from the portal. 

The black figure huffed in a pile, struggling to stand up as he gripped onto a chair with his boney fingers as he pulled himself up. 

Ì̡̧͡W̕Ų̵͢F̶͞E̵̷̛͜͠H̢́͝҉ ̶̸̡̀O҉͠E̴̴͢҉͜A̴̧̛̛͞I͘͘͢͜H̶͢͟͏͞F̸̨̀͝W̶͜ 

Grillby took a step forward towards the man. ''...are you alright?''

The shadow nodded, looking up at Grillby with a white skull that faded down into his gloopy body. 

Ş̴́͠o̴̴̡ ͞ù̴̡͢m̶̧̧̕m̡͠͏̨.̵̷.́͘͜͢ ̵̧͜͠͏I͟'̴͞m̕͘ ̵̴҉s̷̴̨҉o͘͞͏r͏r̡͞ỳ̴̀ ͘͏G̢̕r̷̸҉i̴͜l̶̡̨͝l͠b̸̷̀͠y̵ 

''before you tell me why you're sorry, what is your name?''

D̛̛͝r̵̶̡.̨͘͢ ̷̴͞G̶a҉҉s̶͟t̢͢͝͞e҉r҉͏̷ 

''Gast-''

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So I wrote this along time ago before I fell out of the undertale hype so I thought I may as well post what I had finished ^^ I'm totally into Overwatch now but if something gets released for Undertale in the future I may come back to this! :) Sorry it ends abruptly, this is when past me decided to stop. xD


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